Chicago Cubs continue to improve little by little

Starlin Castro needs to find that consistency that he had when he first was called up.

The Chicago Cubs are one win away from matching their season total from last year. Twenty-two games remain and it seems very likely that the Cubs will finish with a few more wins than last season.

The Cubs aren’t necessarily vastly improved but the club is moving in the right direction. The farm system is beginning to churn out talent such as Junior Lake that has been an excellent addition batting .309 with six home runs and 16 RBI.

The clubs record currently has them slotted to receive the fourth pick in next years draft which should create even more depth in a rising farm system. Even more talent should be reaching the majors in 2014 as the Cubs trudge along with the massive rebuilding effort authored by Theo Epstien and Jed Hoyer.

The most disappointing aspect for the Cubs is the lack of development shown by shortstop Starlin Castro. Castro has been better lately but still needs to find that consistency to get that batting average back to over .300. However, Castro is still very young and has time to reacquire the magic he had when he first arrived to the majors.

With the budding of young talent the Cubs should have a greater record next season. Most likely the Cubs will not contend next year but developing their young talent in the majors will do wonders for the confidence of the club moving forward.

One thing to look for next season is greater talent in the pitching staff. The Cubs must build a foundation of solid pitching in order to maintain consistency that will be lasting and to reach a level of what other perennial contenders have built. With a constant flow of steady arms, the Cubs could contend earlier than expected. After all, the Cubs would probably have a better record if they didn’t need to trade arms such as Matt Garza in order to acquire young talent. Unfortunately, with these necessary trades the Cubs have found an inability for winning consistently or getting on any type of significant winning streak.

It’s difficult to notice but the Cubs are improving, the question remains on how long before they can compete with an already stacked National League Central.